Using the Two Step Advertising Method with Classified Ads
Copyright 2011 Donovan Baldwin
I didn't invent it. It's been around a long time,
actually. A guy named Melvin Powers used it a lot and even
explains it in depth in his book, "Making Money With Classified Ads".
You see, most people simply will not buy anything from a classified ad,
no matter how good it sounds. However, a great many people
will request free stuff, such as free reports.
In the two step
advertising method, you simply offer some sort of free
item, generally a report of some kind. If someone requests a
copy, that automatically "qualifies" them as an interested individual
who is willing to make an effort to get information on the subject
under discussion.
When you provide the report, to a person whom you know is interested in
the subject and who is willing to make some sort of effort because of
this interest, you can then provide them with some information about a
product, generally relatively inexpensive, relevant to the topic. Many people do this by writing and
publishing small articles relevant to their Internet business. This is known as Article Marketing
Now that they know that you have delivered what you promised, they have
some trust that you will do so again. They may or may not
make a purchase at this time, but you still have their address, or in
the Internet age, email address. Studies have shown that very
few people purchase on the first, or even the second contact.
If someone is going to purchase, they will often wait until they have
heard the info several times. In fact, studies have shown
that the majority of purchasers will have to be contacted seven times
before they actually buy.
If, throughout this process, you are continuing to provide friendly
support and free information, without high-pitch sales tactics, their
trust will grow, and you will come closer to making a sale.
On the Internet, one person who uses this two-step technique extremely
well is Mike Dillard, creator of Magnetic Sponsoring.
In Mike's program, a free, 7-video course on sponsoring people into
multilevel (mlm) programs is offered.
By the way, did you notice that the free downline building course
offered by Mike Dillard is made up of seven videos? Wonder
why he decided to offer that particular number, huh?
People who sign up for the course are interested in what Mike Dillard
has to say on the subject of mlm sponsoring and generating leads, and,
since it is free, are willing to request the info. Over the
course of the seven videos, Mike provides a lot of valuable information
and insight, but, his most important and complete information is
included in a product that he sells.
Not only that, but Mike Dillard has developed several different
products of value to people in mlm, and people marketing
online. Once people have seen what he gives away for free,
many go on to actually purchase many of his products.
Another online company which makes good use of the two step advertising
method, is ineedhits.com.
Founded in 1996 to meet the Internet marketing needs of a website
designer's clients, ineedhits.com
has grown to be one of the major
providers of SEO (search engine optimization) and
SEM (search engine
marketing) tools for small and medium sized businesses on the Internet.
Ineedhits.com,
created by Clay Cook and run by him and Rachel Cook,
gets many of its customers the same way they got me as a customer
nearly a decade ago! They offer a free website submission
service, as well as other valuable free SEO and SEM tools.
While the costs of their paid services are actually quite reasonable,
some can be a bit expensive. Most people just starting an
online business are often wary of paying people they don't know for
services they don't understand.
Many who are starting an Internet business are building
on a budget, a field in
which Mike Dillard, who I mentioned earlier, specializes, by the way,
and this increases their desire for free Internet marketing services
while making them more wary about reaching for the wallet!
With ineedhits.com,
as with Magnetic Sponsoring, customers are
created
by giving away free services and/or information. Not just any
old stuff laying around, either, but genuine information of value that
the receiver can usually put to good use immediately.
Well, that's the two step advertising method in a nutshell.
If you would like to learn a little more about it and get some more
ideas before you pour money into a new or existing Internet business, I
would suggest that you look into the two services I have mentioned
(they are FREE...remember?), and get the bible on the subject, "Making Money With Classified Ads" by Melvin
Powers.
About The Author:
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Donovan Baldwin is a Dallas area freelance writer and Internet
marketer. A University Of West Florida alumnus
(1973) with a BA in accounting, he has held several managerial
positions and run his own business. After retiring from the
U. S. Army in 1995, he became interested in Internet marketing and
developed various online businesses. He has been writing
poetry, articles, and essays for over 40 years, and now frequently
publishes articles on his own websites and for use by other
webmasters. Get free advertising
at xtramoney4me.net/free_advertising/adlandpro.html.
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